Academic Achievement and Advanced Courses in High School: Do Schools Provide Access and Are Students Taking Advantage of It?

• In Event: Achievement and Course Taking From the High School Transcript Study: Engagement, Charter Schools, and the Socioeconomic Status Measure in NAEP

Abstract

Educators and researchers recognize the value of encouraging students to take advanced courses. They recognize that students who complete advanced courses typically have higher achievement scores and are more prepared for college. As is shown in the findings from the 2009 NAEP HSTS, there is a gap in minority student advanced coursetaking compared to non-minority students as well as a gap in performance measures such as GPA and NAEP assessment scores. This paper examines whether minority students have comparable access as non-minority students to advanced courses in core subject areas. The paper then looks at the percentage of each cohort that took the courses and examines their relative performance in various school environments.

Authors

• Stephen E. Roey, Westat

• Judy H. Tang, Westat

• Robert Colby Perkins, Westat

• Janis D. Brown, U.S. Department of Education

• Philip H. Morse, Retired